Sinn Fein MEP Martina Anderson has called on the British government to apologise to the 'Hooded Men' who were the victims of British state torture.

Speaking today at the 2015 Sinn Féin Ard Fheis in Derry, Ms Anderson said: “The torture techniques used on ‘the hooded men’, 14 Irish men selected for torture during internment raids, were sanctioned at the highest level of the British Government – by a British Minister of Defence.

“The torment the 'hooded men' suffered lasted long after the torture itself had ended with victims experiencing many forms of ‘long-term’ physical and psychological damage.

“Last year I was privileged to bring representatives of the Hooded Men, NGOs, Relatives for Justice, Pat Finucane Centre and Victims of British State collusion to Brussels.

"Ten days later I knocked at the door of Nils Muznieks European Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe. I presented the information discovered which showed the British State told lies to the European Court at torture hearings regarding the hooded men's treatment.

"As a result of that meeting he came to Belfast. The Irish government was then forced to bring the case back to the European Court of Human Rights in an effort to get the judgement revised.

"This is a vital breakthrough in the pursuit of justice for those who experienced historic state violations of Human Rights.

"Britain is guilty of torture and must apologise to the hooded men just like it recently apologised for using the same five torture techniques in Kenya.

"We always knew what happened to the hooded men was a breach of international law. We knew that the 14 Irish men were indeed tortured and we know that the British Government is guilty of violating international human rights law."